Love Betrayed

by Celya Bowers

  But she didn’t. She couldn’t. She had to make sure Rachel had something to eat. From the looks of things in the house, she hadn’t moved around too much being her first day out of the hospital. Did she eat breakfast? Maybe her mother needed to come by and fix breakfast until Rachel got on her feet.

  She walked down the hall and checked on Rachel. She was sound asleep. The TV wasn’t even on. She noticed a textbook on her bed, and a dozen red roses in a crystal vase set on the bedside table. Maddie shook her head and closed the door and headed for the kitchen.

  Maddie began to prepare a chicken stir fry. She took out the ingredients and began assembling them in order. She chopped vegetables while the pan heated up. She reached for a pack of microwaveable rice when the doorbell rang. She took the pan off the stove and went to answer the summons before it woke Rachel.

  She made it to the door just as it rang again. She knew it was Sean. Something about the way he pushed the button with a forcefulness. A tiny shiver traveled down her spine as she opened the door. He was still dressed in his office attire of a blue suit. No tie. “Hello, Sean. I didn’t think I’d see you today.” She leaned toward him and kissed him gently on the lips. “Come in.” She motioned to the living room as she closed the front door.

  “I wanted to see you.” He walked to the couch and took a seat. “I have some news about DJ, and I wanted you to hear it from me.” He patted the space next to him. “How’s the patient?”

  “She’s asleep,” Maddie said. “Looks like she slept all day. No dishes in sink, doesn’t look like anything in the kitchen has been touch. I think I’ll have Mom come over and make something for breakfast or lunch.” She sat next to him, inhaling the sexy cologne.

  “What about a delivery service?” He grabbed her hand. “That way your mom wouldn’t have to come over. I’m sure Rachel will feel better in a week or so. She doesn’t seem the type to have people fussing over her.” He knew he was the same.

  “I don’t want strange people coming to the house. Especially since there’s people out there looking for her.”

  Sean nodded. “Make sense.”

  She reached for his hand. “I’m making chicken stir-fry for dinner. Would you like some?”

  “You might want to hold that invitation until you hear what I have to say,” he said quietly. “It’s not good, Maddie.”

  She knew that the minute he walked through her door. It was as if a cloud of doom was following him. She braced herself for whatever was going to come out of his mouth. Please don’t let DJ be dead, she pleased. He needs a second chance. “Okay, I promise to listen with an open mind,” she lied.

  “When I went to the office this morning, there were three people waiting to see me. The news reporter, the FBI, and the DEA. They all wanted information about DJ.”

  “Are you serious? Why would the FBI want to know about him?”

  “A lot apparently. They think he might be involved in a sex trafficking scheme going on here in North Texas. One young lady was last seen with DJ and three months later she turned up dead.”

  “I’m sure my brother had nothing to do it! How could he?”

  “They have evidence that he wasn’t involve with the killing because he was in Mexico at the time.”

  She couldn’t hold back the tears. In the back of her mind, she always feared DJ was in trouble. How could he be involved in such an awful crime? Not her brother. “Is this just another case of them trying to find a black man guilty?”

  “Sweetie, you know that’s not the truth. DJ has been placed at the scene of the crime. He had been seen with most of the girls who went missing. Plus, there the drug shipment coming in this week. DJ is right in the middle of all this.”

  “I admit he has made some bad choices over the years, but all he needs is one good break,” she said. This was why her father had washed his hands of DJ years ago. She probably should have too.

  “You can’t save someone who doesn’t want to be saved. Look, how he let thugs beat up Rachel. Most likely he was right there watching them do it. That’s not a man, Maddie.”

  It was one thing for her to think it, but quite another for Sean to sit there like he the king of men and pass judgement on her brother. “I’m sure DJ has his reasons and as soon as he surfaces all this will become clear.” She dropped his hands.

  “Honey, I know you’re upset, but I just didn’t want you to get blindsided with all these new developments in your brother’s case. Your dad had the right idea, you need to wash your hands of DJ. How long is it going to be before he uses you as a pawn in his drug dealings?”

  That did it. “How dare you say that about him? He just needs a break. No one will listen to him. You are all ready to convict him without hearing his story.” She folded her arms across her chest, trying to control her temper and losing the battle.

  Sean sighed and rose from his seat. “This is not a conversation that you’re going to listen to rationally. I’m glad it happened now. Maddie, there’s going to come a time when you’re going to have to choose between your brother and happiness.” He started walking to the front door.

  “Today is not that day. Don’t let the door hit on your way out.”

  He slammed the door as he went.

  Maddie sat on the couch, too upset to cry, too pissed to finish cooking dinner. She was going to have to call for take-out. She hoped Rachel liked Chinese food.

  After she called in her food order, she decided to check on Rachel. She walked down the hall to the guest room. She tapped gently on the door and relief flowed through her as Rachel invited her inside.

  Maddie walked into the room and laughed as her silliness. She thought Rachel hadn’t eaten, but she had ordered in. She noticed a Styrofoam container on the bedside table. How had she missed that earlier? “How are you feeling?”

  “Still pretty sore and tired,” she said quietly. “I hope you don’t mind. Kyle brought me lunch earlier today.” She pointed at the container. “He insisted.”

  Maddie smiled. Rachel had been through so much. She deserved happiness. “As long as you don’t mind, I’m fine with it.” Maddie sat down on the queen-sized bed. “I ordered Chinese food for dinner. I didn’t feel like cooking.”

  Rachel nodded. “I heard you and Sean discussing DJ.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get that loud, but my emotions got the best of me. I love my brother, but deep down I know he’s doing some things that he shouldn’t be doing. I guess it was just hard to hear.”

  “Honey, you are preaching to the choir,” Rachel said. “For a long time, I would just believe whatever came out of his mouth. Things went missing, he claimed the manager was stealing things out of the apartment, when, he was selling my things. When we first got together, I had a car.”

  Maddie tried to remember back to the beginning of DJ and Rachel. “I remember now. It was like a Toyota or something.”

  “Yeah. It was just something to get around in because I had decided to go to college to get my degree. So, I didn’t want to have a lot of bills. One day he came home and said my car had been stolen. He told me he reported it, so I really didn’t think about it. Then one day, I saw someone driving my car!”

  Maddie didn’t want to hear the rest of the story, but knew she had to. “What happened?”

  “I was walking to work one morning, and I see my car drive passed me. It was a student, so I asked him where he got his car. He told me that he bought it for five hundred dollars from a guy that hung out at the arcade. I knew it was DJ.”

  “Did you confront him?”

  “Of course. He said the thief must have sold it. I only had liability on it, because it was such an old car, so I knew the insurance company wouldn’t replace it. DJ kept asking me about another car, but I decided against it. I mean I could have, but it would have probably ended up the same. I decided to save my money.”

  “Weren’t you afraid DJ would realize you had money stashed away?” Maddie asked, remembering all the times DJ said they were brok
e.

  “By this time, I could see what kind of person DJ was. In the beginning, he sweet, but that didn’t last long after he moved in with me. Anything financial goes to the college. I have a mailbox there.”

  “Why didn’t you kick him out? He wasn’t bringing anything to the relationship,” Maddie said.

  “Because I did love him at one point, and I was at the point where I thought a piece of man was better than no man. I didn’t want to be that woman who didn’t have a man at her side, no matter how useless.”

  “Like me, huh? I don’t think I’ve ever been that woman who needed a man. I’m not apologizing for who I am, but I can understand how easy it is to get caught up in a situation.”

  “You’re the reason I went to college. Well you and Maggie, actually your whole family.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, I want to be successful too. I’m majoring in history and minoring graphic arts, mostly because I love art history. I’ve designed some logos for some local artists.”

  “That’s great, Rachel. There’s plenty of advertising agencies who need graphic artists. What have you done?”

  “Well, I’m working on one for the Sociology department, right now. I also did one for a couple of local bands and few authors.”

  Instantly, she thought of Hunter. “I think I might have a job for you. I represent an author who needs a new logo.”

  “I’d love to show you my portfolio,” Rachel said, excitedly. “It’s at school.”

  “Did you keep anything at the apartment?”

  “No, I knew one day DJ’s other life would come crashing in on me, and I needed to be ready to run with nothing. If I had been thinking, I would not been at the apartment.”

  “Why were you at the apartment?”

  It was like a light bulb went off in her head. Her eyes went wide. “DJ called me.”

  ***

  Sean was still breathing fire when he entered his house. That was what he got for trying to be the good guy. Here he was just trying to take the sting out of DJ’s foibles, and Maddie lit into him like he was the one doing drugs.

  “Damn woman,” he muttered, walking to the kitchen. “I can’t wait until this mess is over.” He opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of beer. He twisted the cap and took a swig. The cool liquid soothed his anger and helped him calm down.

  He walked to living room, and noticed his mail was neatly piled in a stack on the coffee table. His mother must have come by. Then he remembered, he was supposed to have dinner with his parents! Oh! Something else he was going to have to fix tomorrow. He noticed his mother’s handwriting on a sheet of paper. Daniel had called. Poker game is moved to Tuesday. Will call with new address.

  Sean quickly decoded the message. The drop had been moved up until Tuesday and it wasn’t at the train yard. Someone must have gotten tipped off. Just great.

  He sat on the couch and opened his mail. He was going to have to think about getting a business manager. Once again, he forgot to pay the Internet bill at the office. Shay was great at depositing checks, but he didn’t think she could handle more than that. His plate was running over with responsibilities.

  His stomach rumbled. In all the craziness of the day, he’d forgotten to eat lunch or dinner. He hoped there was something edible in the fridge. He headed for the kitchen as his cell phone rang. He unclipped his cell phone from his belt as he opened the fridge. He answered on the second ring. “Hello?”

  “Conway, this is Daniel. Drop schedule has changed. Tuesday night at midnight at the Long Branch Railroad Depot.” The call ended.

  “Well, that was brief.” He’d work with federal agencies before and was used to the brisk phone calls. He continued his search for food and hit jackpot. His mother had left him dinner. It was his second favorite meal: roast and potatoes. He put the plate in the microwave and heated the food.

  While he waited for his food, he called two of his agents for backup for Tuesday night. Once he set up things for depot, he sat down with his dinner. He had a lot of thinking to do.

  20

  Tuesday morning, Maddie woke to a ringing phone. She half-hoped it was Sean. She had so much to tell him, but one look at the display, all her hopes were dashed. DJ.

  “What?” She glanced at the bedside alarm clock. It was barely six in the morning.

  “Maddie?”

  “Yes.” She tried her best to contain her anger, but her brain had processed too much and she instantly thought of Rachel.

  “What’s up? You never talk to me like that.” He pressed on. “I need a favor.”

  “Of course, you do. That’s pretty much the only time you’re ringing this number. It’s early what do you want?”

  “Whoa! Hold up. What’s with the attitude?”

  She couldn’t contain her anger any longer. “You. You have lied to this family constantly. You said Rachel wouldn’t give you any money, but in truth you were taking from her. You told her Mom and Dad told you not to come back home. But you didn’t say what you did. You have lied and made me look like a fool. Maggie, Jazz, and Kaelan told me about you sending drug dealers to their house for money. You put your own family’s lives at stake just to spare your own. You are such a coward.” She took a deep breath, willing herself not to cry. After her conversation with Rachel last night, she felt like a first-class fool for even trying to look for him.

  “You’ve been talking to Rachel, haven’t you? Why would you believe her over me? I’m family.”

  “Don’t you even try to use the family card with me. You have played each one of us. And here I was pleading your case of how misunderstood you were.”

  DJ was quiet, no doubt not used to this version of Maddie and her not listening to his petty excuses. “I know you were with that detective when they found Rachel at the apartment. I can’t find Rachel. I know she was released, but no one knows where she went.”

  “Why do you care?”

  “I need to talk to her. She has something I need. She hasn’t been back to the apartment.”

  “And how would you know that?”

  “Because I’ve been there, and nothing has been touched. I really need to talk to her.”

  “Too bad.” She hung up the phone and pulled the covers over her head. She’d made such a mess out of everything. She fought with Sean because of DJ and he was exactly what Sean said he was. How was she going to fix this mess?

  First, she needed to talk to her father and update him on the situation. She hated being wrong, but she was going to have to put on her big girl panties on and face the music. She sat up and dialed her childhood home. Her father picked up on the first ring.

  “Hey Dad, I didn’t wake you, did I?”

  “No, baby girl, I have a full docket today. You know I like to get my reading in before your mother forces me to exercise with her. What are you doing up so early?”

  “DJ just called me. Dad, I found out he’s in a lot more trouble than I realized,” she said. “I just can’t believe this is the same person I was trying to defend against the world.” She filled her father in on the information she’d discovered.

  “I tried to protect you because I didn’t want this to hurt your business. You see, honey, this is DJ rebelling against us.”

  “Okay, Dad, you’re going to have to explain that.”

  “There’s a lot of pressure on the oldest child. Especially when his other siblings complete their degrees without problems. DJ has always been afraid to try and now he’s paying the price for taking the easy way out.”

  “I always wondered why you stopped helping him. Now I understand. I just feel awful that I treated Rachel unfairly all those years.”

  “But now you’re letting her recuperate at your house. You can only go forward, baby.”

  That was her father. He could always make her feel better. “Thanks, Dad. I wished I would have listened to you and just ignored the feeling in my neck. “Then she wouldn’t have met Sean or got reacquainted with Rachel or learned the truth
about DJ. Sometimes life lessons just hurt.

  “Everyone has a journey. I know you and Sean have been keeping company as my mother used to say.”

  “How did you know?”

  “You live ten minutes away from us. One night your mother wanted some ice cream, and I was coming from the store, I noticed his truck in your driveway.”

  “That’s not the way I wanted you guys to find out.”

  “I’m just happy you’re dating and not letting your job consume you. Once all this mess is settled, we’ll have to have dinner. The four of us.”

  “I don’t know about that Dad. We had a fight last night and he stormed out of the house.”

  Her father sighed. “He told you the truth about DJ and you went on the defensive.”

  “Yes, I did. You know I hate being wrong.”

  “Well baby this time you are. You need to make it up with him. As you can see, you were wrong.”

  “I’m going to call him later today and apologize. Hopefully, we can patch things up.”

  “I sure hope so. Sean is a good man and is good at his job. He wouldn’t have told you about DJ if it weren’t true. Don’t miss out on something great because of your pride.” He ended the call.

  Maddie felt better after talking with her father. Now she was ready to face the day.

  As she started to prepare breakfast, Rachel joined her in the kitchen. Maddie thought she was up and moving around way too fast. “Rachel, I was going to bring this to you.” Rachel was still in her night gown and bathrobe.

  Rachel sat down slowly at the kitchen table. “I’ve been in a bed for the last week, I’m used to moving around. I’m going stir crazy. The doctor said it was going to take me at least six weeks to heal from all this. I don’t think I can stay still that long.”

  Maddie nodded as she took eggs, bacon, cheese, milk, and the rest of the items for breakfast out of the fridge. She reached in the cabinet for the coffee grounds. “Since you have some idle time, how about working on the logo for Hunter’s website.”